Our Wildlife Fact Sheet

Emu

One of the most interesting and The Emu has greatly reduced wings, but long and powerful reptilian-like legs with large feet and sharp recognisable birds found in the claws. Victorian bush is the Emu. With its Their feet have three toes that all face forward, which long reptilian legs, bushy looking enables them to run fast. feathers and sheer size, it’s unmistakable. Scientific name Dromaius novaehollandiae Did you know? The Emu is Australia’s tallest native bird. Emus can’t fly! Australia is the only country in the world where you will find an Emu in the wild. The nest of an Emu can be up to 1.5 metres wide. Figure 1. Emu © I. McCann DSE 2009 An Emu egg can weigh up to 680 grams, which is the equivalent of about 12 chicken eggs. Diet Emus are omnivorous, which means they eat a variety Emus can run at speeds of up to 48 km per hour. of plants and animals. Emus swallow large pebbles to help their stomach grind Their food choice depends on what is available; it can up food. include leaves, grasses, fruits, native plants and The Emu and Kangaroo are on Australia’s Coat of insects. Arms. It is thought they were chosen as they are the Emus seek out the most nutritious part of the plant to only two Australian animals that can’t move backwards. eat in order to help maintain their huge body weight. The Coat of Arms therefore symbolises a nation moving forward. Habitat Description Emus live in a variety of habitats from open arid plains to tropical woodlands. They avoid thickly forested The Emu is a large bird, standing up to 2 m tall and areas. weighing up to 55 kg. It is covered in primitive feathers that are dusky brown Distribution to grey-brown with black tips. Emus occur in all Australian states except Tasmania. The Emu’s neck is bluish black and mostly free of They are found across most of Victoria, although they feathers. Their eyes are yellowish brown to black and avoid densely populated areas and are generally their beak is brown to black. absent from the central district. They move around their home range according to climatic conditions, although will stay in one area if food and water are readily available.

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Our Wildlife Fact Sheet

They can move large distances, travelling at rates of 15 What you can do to help! – 25 km per day. Join a local conservation group. Many groups work on improving habitat for Emus. For more information on how you can improve native habitat on your property, visit the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning website at: www.wildlife.vic.gov.au. Be aware of road signs indicating Emus are in an area and slow down when driving. Take caution particularly at dawn and dusk, when Emus are most active. If you do see wildlife when you are driving, be careful and give them plenty of time and space to move off the

road. Control your dog, dogs can harass and injure Emus and other wildlife.

Figure 2. Recorded occurrences in Victoria Source: Victorian Biodiversity Atlas (records post 1979), version 15/5/2017 Breeding Emus usually pair up in summer and autumn, and mate in winter. Pairs remain together for about five months. Their nest is a scraped area on the ground lined with grass or leaves. The female lays between five and fifteen eggs. The eggs are about the length of a human hand and are dark bluish-green when first laid. Once the eggs are laid, the female leaves the nest and the male takes over the incubation process, by sitting on the eggs to keep them warm. Figure 3. Emu chick. © I. McCann DSE 2009 For eight weeks, the male sits continuously on the eggs. The male rarely eats during this time and as a Further reading result can lose a lot of weight. Simpson, K. and Day, N., (2010), Field guide to the Newly hatched Emu chicks weigh just over 500 g. They birds of Australia, (8th ed), Penguin Books, Australia. are cream-coloured with dark brown stripes. The Morcombe, M., (2004), Field guide to Australian birds, colouration helps to camouflage them from predators. Steve Parish Publishing, Australia. Wild Emus can live for 5 to 10 years.

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